An Overview of
Art History
A look at major trends and schools of art in
Western Culture
Compiled by Prof. John C. R. Silbert
For use in the HUMA 1010 course, RMU
Please Note:
The following slide presentation and the visuals that
accompany it are intended for the sole educational
purposes of HUMA 1010 academic study. As such, the
material contained herein is offered under the rubric of
the fair use clause of U.S. copyright law.
Any other uses for this material are prohibited without
the permission of the instructor and/or additional
inquiry into copyrights that may be held by outside
parties.
-- Prof. John C. R. Silbert
HUMA 1010, RMU
All Visual Art is Imitation


Aristotle’s word for imitation is
“mimesis”; what the actor sought
to do; to reveal the truth of human
beings.
Art as Imitation does this in two
essential ways:
– Art as Likeness:
 Rembrandt Van Rijn (top right)
– “The Jewish Bride,” 1667
– Art as Alteration:
 Wassily Kandinsky (bottom right)
– “Composition VIII,” 1923


Within each essential form there
are any number of styles.
Some seek to paint what is there to
be painted, while others seek to
paint what is in the artist’s mind
(and heart).
Classical Art: Art as Likeness
Temple of Artemis in Ephesus
Roman tile portrait
Grecian Urn
Sarcophagus of woman and dog;
Late Roman
Classical Art -- quick facts:






Classical art is noted for its strong sense of form, proportion and
balance.
Much of the art and architecture served the needs of the state.
Classical art at first sought to idealize the human form; reaching for
perfection (as the gods/goddesses were perfect). Note the
sculpture on p. 147 in TABH.
Much of the art of the Greek period was attributed to Phidias, a
painter, sculptor and architect greatly admired in the 5th cy B.C.E.
In the late 4th cy B.C.E., the emphasis shifted towards realism; with
less depictions of idealized forms replaced by more life-like human
qualities. Note the sculpture on p. 149 in TABH.
Roman Art often depicted less serene, more dynamic forms that
appealed to human passions.
Euclid’s “Golden Section”
This is a mathematical calculation of balance
that states the most pleasing relationship
between two connecting parts is such that the
smaller is to the larger as the larger is to the
sum of the two.
 It is expressed mathematically as a ratio of
1:1.68.
 The golden section finds its way into
architecture and painting in the classical and
subsequent art periods.
 Leonardo da Vinci was so impressed by this
principle that he called it the “Divine Proportion.”

The Parthenon, Acropolis, Greece
Euclid’s Golden Section in Architecture
A
B
C
The Golden Section: the smaller is to the larger as the larger is to the
sum of the two -- BC is to AB as AB is to AC.
Slide reference from
http://ccins.camosun.bc.ca/~jbritton/goldslide/jbgoldslide.htm
Leonardo’s “Annunciation of the Virgin”




Divide this painting into a square on
the left and another on the right. (If it
is a root-5 rectangle, these lines mark
out two golden-section rectangles as
the parts remaining after a square has
been removed).
Also mark in the lines across the
picture which are 0·618 of the way up
and 0·618 of the way down it.
Also mark in the vertical lines which
are 0·618 of the way along from both
ends. You will see that these lines
mark out significant parts of the
picture or go through important
objects.
You can then try marking lines that
divide these parts into their golden
sections too.
Reference from -http://www.mcs.surrey.ac.uk/Personal/R.Knott/Fibonacci/fibInArt.html#daVinci
Byzantine Art
Icon of Madonna and Child
Bust of Emperor Constantine
Byzantine and Medieval Art





For nearly a 1000 years, the art world came under the
influence of the Christian church. (5th cy C.E. to 15th cy
C.E.).
Beginning with Emperor Constantine’s conversion to
Christianity, the church began a strong cultural mandate
in Western culture.
The goal of art was to remind people of Jesus Christ, the
saints and apostles and the story contained in Holy
Scriptures.
Depictions of Christ showed his wisdom and depth (a
more adult-like face even when showing him as a child.)
The Pagan world of classical art was frowned upon.
Medieval Art
Detail of stained glass;
St. Peter with Keys
Cathedral Carving
Poitiers, France
From the cathedral at
Chartres, France
Medieval Art
Gargoyle; York Minster Cathedral
The Nave of York Minster
The Renaissance
“Mona Lisa” ( aka, La Gioconda) wood panel
Leonardo da Vinci; 1503-1506
“Renaissance” means “rebirth.” This period
was known for its flowering in the arts,
music and literature. Increasing emphasis
was placed on essential human qualities
and on freedom and individuality.
The three great art figures of this period
are Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and
Raphael.
“The Last Supper,” 1498 fresco
Leonardo da Vinci;
Painted in the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan
Michelangelo
“David,” St. Peter’s, Rome
“The Pieta,” St. Peter’s Rome
Details of panels from
Michelangelo’s painting of the
Sistine Chapel showing the
Creation of Adam (top) and
Eve (right).
Raphael Sanzio
“School of Athens,” 1510
Rembrandt van Rijn
“The Jewish Bride,” 1667
The greatest of “The Dutch Masters,”
Rembrandt perfected art as realism
and the use of chiaroscura.
“The Return of the Prodigal,” 1669
Goya
“The Shootings of May Third,” 1814
Goya represents an early turning in art from
realism (as likeness), to art as alteration. Many of
his works were expressive of an inner vision and
commentary about the times in which he lived.
“The Puppet,” 1791
The Advent of Photography and the
end of the dominance of realism
Above: 31st PA Regiment Soldier’s Family
visits on the battlefield (1861-65);
Upper Right: Abraham Lincoln c. 1860;
Lower Right: Union Dead at Gettysburg,
July 1863
Impressionism
“The Waitress,” 1877
Eduard Manet
Sought to focus on the way light is perceived
by the human eye. This period inaugurates
art as alteration. Imitation in art is within the
painter.
“Madame Monet and her Son,” 1875
Claude Monet
“The Child’s Bath,” 1893
Mary Cassatt
Post-Impressionism
Vincent Van Gogh
“Fifteen Sunflowers in a
Vase,” 1888
“Self-Portrait with
Bandaged Ear,” 1889
Pointilism
“Le Pont de Courbevoie,” 1886-1887, by Georges Seurat
The 1913 69th Regiment Armory
Exhibition
Named for the building in New York City where this art
exhibition took place.
 Brought to the U.S. many of the new modern artists who
were launching into art as alteration with boldness and
intensity.
 This art exhibition found few admirers at the time due to
its radical departures from traditional painting.
 Unlike Van Gogh (and others in Post-impressionist
alteration) who began with the natural world and
painted it as they saw it, alteration for these modern
artists sought to impose something new on the world,
something inside themselves.

Abstractionism
“Composition VIII,” 1923, Vasiliy Kandinsky
“Arearea” (Joyousness), 1892, by Paul Gauguin
Cubism
“Les Demoiselles d’Avignon,” 1902,
By Pablo Picasso
“Guitar and Violin,” c. 1912
By Pablo Picasso
“Guernica,” 1937; By Pablo Picasso
“Bottle and Fishes,” 1910; By Georges Braque
Surrealism
A style of painting that has recognizable figures
and shapes but these things are related to each
other as objects in dreamlike state.
“The Persistence of Memory,” 1931 By Salvador Dali
“The Last Supper,” 1955, By Salvador Dali
Georgia O’Keefe
“Iris,” 1929
“Series 1, Number 8,” 1919
“Red and Orange Hills,” 1938-1939
Modern Realism
“Nighthawks,” 1942, By Edward Hopper
“Cape Cod Afternoon,” 1936 (Carnegie Museum of Art)
“A Woman in the Sun,” 1961, The Whitney
“Into Bondage,” 1936, Aaron Douglas
“Aspects of Negro Life: From Slavery through Reconstruction,”
1934
“Ugly Americans,”
by Duane Hanson
Abstract Expressionism
“Greyed Rainbow,” 1953, By Jackson Pollock
Study for “Woman Number 1,” 1952, By Willem de Kooning
Pop Art
“Campbell’s Soup 1,” 1968,
By Andy Warhol
“Beethoven,” 1987, By Andy Warhol
“Elvis,” 1964
“Soft Toilet,” 1966
By Claes Oldenburg
“Knife Ship II,” 1986, By Claes Oldenburg
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
“Flying Pins,” 2000, By Claes Oldenburg; Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Andrew Wyeth
– Prof. Silbert’s favorite artist
“Spindrift,” 1950
Denounced by some art critiques as a mere “copier” – derogatory even
to a realist – Wyeth comes from a long line of artists (his son Jamie) and
illustrators (his father, N.C.). Wyeth once spoke of his art as radically
abstract.
“Christina’s World,” 1948 (Maine was one of two places of inspiration to him.).
Portrait of President J. F. Kennedy,
by Jamie Wyeth, c. 1967
“Braids” (Helga), 1979
Wyeth divides his time between
Chadds Ford, PA and Maine.
An illustration for “Treasure
Island” by N. C. Wyeth, 1911
“Wind from the Sea,” 1948
Modern Architecture
Frank Lloyd Wright, one of the three
major architects mentioned in TABH
sought to bring balance between
form (art), function (use) and the
environment. He pushed the notion
that “form follows function;” an idea
that the needs of a building’s use
come first before any artifice (form)
should be applied. Buildings should
blend with the environment and not
overwhelm it. Where necessary, a
building should shield the building’s
user from harsh and unattractive
outside influences.
To the Left: “Falling Water,”
built for the private use of
the Kaufmann family in
Ohiopyle, PA.
Frank Lloyd Wright
The Guggenheim Museum, New York
Built with thick walls to shut out urban noise and suffused with
indirect lighting, Wright sought to create a “quiet oasis” for the
viewing of other works of human creativity (modern art).
Frank O. Gehry
The Guggenheim Museum; Bilbao, Spain, 1997
For Gehry, form is paramount to his architectural
vision; a vision that is uniquely his. There is
nothing “classical” about this structure and unlike
Johnson he pays no homage to earlier forms.
His architectural is innovative and controversial.
Philip Johnson
Johnson was inspired by Gothic forms
(late medieval church architecture)
and re-invigorated them into new
striking building designs.
PPG Place; Pittsburgh, PA
Bell Tower, Crystal Cathedral;
Garden Grove, CA
Wedding at the Crystal Cathedral
As TABH says, “The
world of art belongs to
you.”
“American Gothic,” 1930
By Grant Wood